As a playwright, Samuel Beckett wrote unconventional plays that tested the boundaries of theater. His stories are often perplexing upon first glance, and many employ devices not often seen by audiences, including disembodied voices, the lack of a full physical body throughout the play, and dramatic representations of situations, such as the confinement of Nagg and Nell to trash bins in Endgame. Samuel Beckett uses many of these techniques and plays to examine personal state of mind, aging, and complex relationships.
[...] In Act Pozzo is the master of Lucky, a servant. With Pozzo in fine health, the master-servant relationship is striking. Pozzo orders Lucky to do everything for him, such as place a stool down for him to sit, even though Pozzo could physically do these things himself. Therefore, Pozzo seems to be a selfish and spoiled person, who treats and uses his servant in a cruel manner. Pozzo's ability but refusal to do simple tasks such as carry around his own stool shows us that Pozzo is relishing in the power he has over Lucky. [...]
[...] He answers her less, and she speaks directly to him less. As discussed in class, this play can be read as a commentary on relationships and love. The physical deterioration of Winnie emphasizes the physical nature of love, and it examines a relationship in which the possibility of sexual intercourse does not exist. Willie's coldness toward Winnie's stories and talking can be read as his own frustration due to the fact that he and his wife no longer have physical intimacy. [...]
[...] To Winnie, the bag also represents memories, as she is often reminded of stories while using her things, such as stories of other couples or occurrences when she was a little girl. The physical inability of Winnie to move from the mound therefore reveals to us certain aspects of her state of mind. We know that she feels her identity is part of the bag and its contents. “It's the things, Willie. In the bag, outside the she says on page 54. [...]
[...] Winnie's physical deterioration leads us to this possible overall interpretation of the play, because it emphasizes the fact that Winnie and Willie cannot be intimate. The play shows Winnie struggling to get what she feels she needs from Willie, in the form of answers and attention. Both are frustrated at their situation. They are supposed to have an everlasting love for each other due to their marriage, but this love does not automatically lead to happiness, especially not eternal happiness. [...]
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